Tokyo Ravens - Volume 10 - Chapter 5.1

Chapter 5 - Cursed Temple on Fire 
Part 1 
The stern yet alluring voice of a mature woman. The instant that mantra sounded in her mind, Akino's breathing momentarily stopped and her ears stood straight up. 
In addition to Akino, shocked expressions even surfaced on Natsume and the Mystical Investigator named Yamashiro with that sudden voice. 
But unlike the purely shocked Akino, the two seemed to already know who exactly the master of the voice was. 
"That voice just now!" 
"Damn, he's already here!?" 
They turned their gazes towards the mountaintop as they shouted. 
Then, Akino realized who exactly the master of the voice just now was from the reactions of the two of them. 
...Tsuchimikado Harutora had come! Natsume's childhood friend was here! 
Huh, but the voice just now had been a female voice. Could it be that Tsuchimikado Harutora was a woman? Or maybe he had ascended the mountain with a woman. No matter which possibility it was, Tsuchimikado Harutora was already at Seishuku Temple, that was for sure. 
...Natsume......!? 
Fretfulness that she had never before showed was on Natsume's face. Fretfulness - along with anxiety, anticipation, and even a little bit of dread were mixed together into an extremely complex expression. 
"You've started getting a bit panicked. But since my target's already arrived, I don't have the time. I'll quickly finish you right away." 
Yamashiro declared coldly, controlling the group of eye-catching black kodoku. 
"......That's my line." 
Flashing electricity crackled as it flowed over Natsume's entire body. Yamashiro snorted, unleashing the kodoku again. 
Natsume fearlessly stood in front of Akino, facing the approaching group of kodoku. Lightning filled her vision with a crash and Akino desperately held back from crying out. 
Akino felt like she had entered another world in this vortex of intense vibrations and rumbling that she was experiencing for the first time in her life. Lightning struck next to her again and again. The ears on her head were also flattened as her legs trembled, unable to move. Even checking the surrounding situation was very difficult. 
She didn't even have room to step into that kind of intense magic battle. All she could do was back up as much as possible to make sure she didn't obstruct Natsume from moving back. 
So at least, 
"T-Tengu-san! Please help Natsume!" 
Even though her request was so irrational, Akino still shouted. She shouted while moving as far from Natsume and Yamashiro as she could, running away from the terrifying thunder. 
Then, she fell down. 
...Ah, honestly! 
How slow did she have to be? But she didn't have time to sigh about it. She adjusted her crooked glasses, breaking into a run again. 
But the next moment, a mysterious loss of energy passed over Akino. Akino staggered and almost fell down again, hastily stopping herself. 
...Eh? What was that? 
At the same time as she suddenly noticed something was wrong, Akino realized that the rumbling thunder had also vanished. 
"Natsume!?' 
She hastily turned around and spotted Natsume there down on one knee. Akino was frozen with terror for a moment. It wasn't just the electricity that had vanished, as even the group of kodoku Yamashiro controlled had also disappeared. Then, Yamashiro looked up, cursing fiercely, "Damn!" 
"What's up with that barrier!? A magical array? Did Jougen do this?" 
Yamashiro was angry. Then, Akino also noticed that even her rabbit ears had vanished. 
Though she didn't really understand, it appeared that all magic-related things had suddenly been rendered ineffective. It was probably related to Tsuchimikado Harutora arriving at the mountain. The reason that Natsume was kneeling was definitely related to magic becoming ineffective. She was a living spirit like Akino. 
But Natsume's situation was even more severe than Akino, who just felt a loss of energy. Her face was pale and her body couldn't move. Right now, she was practically collapsed on the ground. 
...Could it be! 
It wasn't just because she was a living spirit, it was probably also related to how she had already died and been resurrected. In that case, wouldn't Natsume fall into quite a dangerous state when magic was sealed? 
"Tch! I guess I have to!" On the other hand, Yamashiro, who had lost his kodoku and whose magic had been sealed, fished something out of his clothes with a grim expression. 
It was a pistol. Akino's expression changed. 
"I won't kill you. But don't blame me if you still try to resist and I shoot your leg. In any case, you have no chance of victory if magic is sealed. Give up!" 
Yamashiro approached Natsume without any regard for her reply. Natsume slumped on the ground on one knee, glaring at Yamashiro through her scattered black hair. Though an endless fighting spirit shot out of her eyes, her face was bloodless and her forehead was heavily sweating. Even though the gun-toting Mystical Investigator was already close by, Natsume didn't seem like she would be standing up anytime soon. 
Natsume's condition was very dangerous. Akino reflexively rushed to Natsume's side. But someone was already standing between Natsume and Yamashiro, even faster than Akino. 
The shikigami named Tengu. 
Yamashiro stopped. 
The tengu shikigami was also affected by the barrier. Lag was all over his body, and his figure had almost vanished already. Even so, the shikigami stood sluggishly between the two of them, facing Yamashiro face-to-face in order to stop him. 
"Hey. Don't get in the way." 
Yamashiro growled indifferently. The gun sounded and the lag on the shikigami's body became even more severe. 
Of course, Akino shouted "Stop" with a paled face, but Yamashiro didn't pay attention at all. One shot, two shots [52] . Yamashiro continuously opened fire. He fired to make the shikigami's movements even slower to stop the shikigami while closing in on Natsume bit by bit. 
Just then, the situation changed again. 
Suddenly, the strange loss of energy inside Akino's body vanished. 
The barrier rendering magic ineffective had been released. Natsume's eyes flashed as she staggered up. Yamashiro raised the gun in a panic, but the hand he gripped the gun with had been grabbed tightly by a hand as thick as a log extending from the shikigami next to him. 
Yamashiro glared, immediately forming a blade seal with his left hand and slashing at the shikigami's arm. While the lag cleared away, Yamashiro rapidly withdrew his right hand and retreated. But the pistol dropped from his hand onto the ground. 
The tengu shikigami stepped on Yamashiro's dropped pistol. 
Then, Tengu crushed the pistol into scrap with a heavy impact. 
"You!?" 
Yamashiro began preparing with the charms he took out like magic after pulling away. But at that point, Natsume had already prepared for battle again. Electricity filled Natsume's body and she held many charms in her two hands to confront Yamashiro. Akino stopped and held her breath again. She felt that a magic battle would start again between these two people and the tengu shikigami in the middle. 
But the tengu shikigami standing motionless between the two of them quietly said something inaudible. 
Natsume and Yamashiro stopped moving at the same time. The shikigami straightened the back it had been hunching before, turning its gaze in the direction of the foot of the mountain - the north side of the North Star Mountain. Akino swiftly followed its gaze. The sound of something moving came from within the dense, lush forest. 
The sound of something very large moving. 
Akino rematerialized the rabbit ears that had vanished because of the barrier. As Akino stuck her ears up, the presence she felt immediately became clear to her. The sound of bark rapidly splitting apart and branches cracking came to her. Also, a mechanical sound of metal rubbing together. 
Then, the moment Akino thought of trying to see what was in the forest, a giant body of metal rushed into the battlefield, kicking aside the giant cedar trees. 
That giant body of metal had the form of a spider. A strange spider - Tsuchigumo. 
"That--!?" 
"An Armored Juggernaut!? How! Why is it here?" 
Natsume and Yamashiro exclaimed in shock. With that, the Tsuchigumo heading towards the mountaintop abruptly stopped. 
On the Tsuchigumo's torso was the upper body of a samurai wearing ancient armor. The iron helmet that covered its face turned to Natsume and the others. 
A hazy flame shimmered in the depths of the empty face inside the iron mask. The moment those empty eyes caught Natsume and the others, they seemed to turn flashing and radiant. The eight steel legs supporting its torso moved up and down intensely as if they felt happy at spotting their enemy. 
Then, it charged straight towards Natsume and the others. 
"What!?" 
Yamashiro hastily retreated. Natsume and the tengu shikigami also fled from the linearly-charging Tsuchigumo in a panic. 
Even though it looked quite massive from the outside, the Tsuchigumo's movements were extremely fast. The Tsuchigumo immediately adjusted its direction the moment its charge was dodged and charged straight ahead again. A momentum as if it were yelling 'chaaarge'. It was a strange-seeming body of metal, but why did it feel so terrifyingly powerful? 
"Could it be...... Did Tsuchimikado Harutora bring this here!?" 
Yamashiro dodged the second charge with all his might as he roared. Even if he could use magic, he still wasn't an opponent who could face the Tsuchigumo head-to-head. After all, the opponent was a spider as powerful as a tank. Though Akino didn't know exactly what kind of thing the 'Armored Juggernaut' was, she felt that it would be impossible for a pure human to win against it head-to-head. 
The Tsuchigumo samurai charged towards Yamashiro while spitting silk from its mouth. 
Its target was Natsume. Natsume crackled with lightning, incinerating the spider silk. But the lightning that attacked the Tsuchigumo's main body at the same time barely harmed the Tsuchigumo at all. The Tsuchigumo's movements were just slightly delayed by lag, and although it fully endured the blow, it was unharmed. 
The Tsuchigumo freely swung its eight legs while charging and spitting spider silk around it, toying with Natsume and Yamashiro. The two of them managed to escape it since the Tsuchigumo was targeting both of them at once, but the Tsuchigumo showed no signs of slowing down at all. Before anyone knew it, the tengu shikigami had already moved away from the two of them, watching the freely-rampaging Tsuchigumo. 
The Tsuchigumo rapidly stampeded back and forth with abandon. It wasn't like a machine at all, as its movements were filled with vigor. But it had quite the mass after all, and the surroundings shook constantly like an earthquake. Akino and the others barely managed to stay balanced. 
But, "Eek!?" 
The rampaging Tsuchigumo charged at the frozen Akino. More accurately, the position the Tsuchigumo turned through just happened to be where Akino was. Akino's ears shot up as if she had been pricked and prepared to escape in a panic. 
Then, she fell down. 
"Akino!?" 
Frightened, Natsume immediately released a lightning strike. She probably wanted to hold back the Tsuchigumo. The lightning strike dropped straight on the Tsuchigumo's body. But never mind being harmed, the Tsuchigumo's speed didn't even drop. Its eight legs trampled the ground as it charged towards the fallen Akino. 

Akino felt that she was going to die. 
But the moment before it squashed Akino, the Tsuchigumo suddenly stopped moving. 
Its giant body slid to the side because of the effects of inertia. Akino cradled her head as she lay on the ground, but fortunately, the Tsuchigumo raised its body above her and deliberately raised the legs that were about to touch Akino as it deftly dodged her and flew out. The Tsuchigumo finally managed to stop after it had completely passed over Akino. 
Akino's ears stuck up as she lay on the ground and she looked around. Then, she raised her head and saw that the Tsuchigumo that had flown over her head had changed its direction and was peering at Akino. Akino met the samurai's gaze. 
Her mind had become blank. 
A hazy light slowly swayed inside the iron helmet that symbolized anger. She felt an illusion as if the samurai's look were conveying something like "Tch, a civilian". Just an ordinary complaint. The Tsuchigumo soon lost interest in Akino and took aim to charge at Yamashiro who was staring on in shock. 
Akino blinked in surprise. 
...I-It seems like it let me go just now! 
While Akino was still spacing out on the ground, 
"Akino! Are you hurt?" 
Natsume ran over, speaking as she helped Akino up. 
"N-Natsume? What, what's going on?" 
"The Armored Juggernaut - one of the military shikigami that Yakou made." 
"M-Military shikigami?" 
"Yeah. Though I fought one once...... it feels completely different. ......As expected. Back then, it was definitely because the shikigami's master was different......" 
The Tsuchigumo had probably let Akino go just now. It was a spider-shaped body of metal, but it felt particularly human. That was very likely because of its master. 
Natsume held Akino's shoulders while looking at the mountain top with a grim expression. The direction of the temple. Akino felt certain when she saw Natsume's pure and resolute look. As expected, he was in the monastery. Natsume's childhood friend whom she had come to see. 
Then, at that moment, a dazzling flame lit up on the mountaintop they gazed at. Also, a powerful magical energy spilled forth. The presence of a fierce battle that was enough to affect the foot of the mountain. 
A magic battle was being fought there. 
"......Akino. Sorry. I......" 
"You're going?" 
"Yeah." 
Natsume turned her head, nodding while looking into Akino's eyes. The current Natsume felt as if she were even younger than herself to Akino, probably because of her undisguised attitude. 
"I understand. I-I'll go too. Actually, I can carry Natsume there--" 
"It's alright. I'll use my 'trump card'." 
"Trump card?" 
"Yeah. Akino, you don't need to force yourself." 
Yamashiro evaded the Tsuchigumo's attacks on his own as the two of them talked to each other. Even Yamashiro didn't have it easy against the Tsuchigumo. The Tsuchigumo had also started becoming angered against the opponent who was more powerful than it had anticipated. 
But right as Natsume stepped away from Akino and was about to advance, the Tsuchigumo immediately included Natsume as an attack target again. It spat spider silk at Yamashiro before it and took advantage of the opening left by his having to deal with the spider silk to charge towards Natsume again. 
This time, Natsume didn't try to flee. 
The ground shook as the Tsuchigumo rushed straight at her. Akino's ears trembled. Yamashiro clicked his tongue while taking up a charm, thinking that it would be troublesome if Natsume died. The tengu shikigami who observed from the side also took a stance as if it were right about to step out. 
The distance between the girl and the Tsuchigumo shortened. 
Even so, Natsume didn't retreat. 
She brushed her black hair while calling out sternly. 
"Come, Hokuto. ...First seal, purge!" 
Right as the words left her mouth, an astonishing 'yin aura' poured from Natsume's entire body. 
It didn't feel mixed at all. It was a noble, high-level yin water aura. That was what it had been called by some ancient practitioners. 
In other words, it was 'draconic aura'. 
Then, Natsume's spiritual power increased explosively. The aura that could be felt from Natsume's body was no longer the spiritual power of a 'human'. It was as if she were a mobile spiritual disaster. Akino realized instinctively. The small golden water dragon Natsume had let her see in the morning. This spiritual power housed in Natsume's body - composing a major portion of Natsume's body - was the spiritual power of that beautiful creature. 
It wasn't a water dragon. 
Rather, it was a true dragon. 
Yamashiro, who was held up behind them, also stopped speechless upon seeing Natsume's seal being released. Even the furiously-charging Tsuchigumo was taken aback and its advance was thrown into disarray. 
Natsume extended her right arm, raising it above her head, as if to grab the entire sky. The draconic aura in Natsume's body spread towards the sky alongside Natsume's raised right hand. 
According to the 'Five Elements of Yin and Yang', a basic tenet of Onmyoudou, 'lightning aura' was composed of the wood element of the five elements. Moreover, it was water aura that generated wood aura. 
Water generates wood in the Five Elements Mutual Generation. 
In addition, what Natsume released was no simple water aura. Rather, it was the high-purity yin aura released by a true dragon - draconic aura. The lightning aura that the draconic aura generated was practically indistinguishable from the 'divine roar' that the dragon god ruling the weather would release towards the ground while angry. [53] 
The divine spiritual power that Natsume brought forth was condensed into magical energy. 
Natsume loudly chanted an incantation. 
"Thunder, fill the sky for nine days!" [54] 
The greatest thunder god of Taoism, Lei Gong [55] . And the Cross of Thunder bearing Lei Gong's name. 
Natsume chanted the magic while swinging her raised right hand straight at the Tsuchigumo. 
Thunder engulfed the world. 
The battlefield was completely split in two by the image of the high-temperature white streak of light. The golden lightning pierced through the Tsuchigumo, and dazzling, scalding, and terrifying arcs of electricity fiercely scattered from the Tsuchigumo. 
She couldn't open her eyes at all. Akino covered her face with her hands, her rabbit ears jumping left and right in agitation. Her senses also became slow. Her senses were all paralyzed and she couldn't even keep her balance. 
She didn't know how long it was after that, as if even her sense of time had vanished. Akino opened the eyelids that she had shut out of fright. 
The Tsuchigumo had fallen. 
Its body that was supported by the eight legs was emitting smoke and dropped on the ground. Even the ground around it was deeply indented as if it had been crushed. 
Then, in front of the Tsuchigumo stood Natsume, her arm still swung down. 
Faint remnants of electricity still crackled on Natsume's body. The draconic aura had already been released now, and swirled elegantly around its master. That appearance seemed as if she were a shaman who had summoned a lightning god into her own body. 
Akino was dumbstruck. 
But, 
"Careful, the Armored Juggernaut can still move!" 
Natsume didn't even turn around as she warned Akino. How was that possible? Right as Akino thought that, the Tsuchigumo moved with a clank. 
She 'looked' over inside the samurai helmet - with no traces of weakness - and the fiery light that flashed in its eyes was still not extinguished. The unyielding fighting spirit and the sense of mission in those eyes slowly burned. 
The Tsuchigumo's legs started moving with a clatter. 
"Akino - I'll be there soon." 
Natsume said that to Akino and rushed off towards the Tsuchigumo. Akino was tongue-tied. Natsume's actions were so swift and powerful, but they were also extremely spry. 
Natsume ran like the wind. 
The Tsuchigumo stood up again, its whole body shaking. 
The samurai spat out spider silk. Natsume incinerated it with lightning. After that, she leaped up. She flew high through the sky - but the Tsuchigumo aimed at Natsume who was flying in midair and jumped up. Its sharp legs pierced upwards like spears. 
...Natsume......!? 
They were almost about to hit Natsume. 
But Natsume stepped in midair and barely avoided the Tsuchigumo's legs. 
Natsume moved step by step in midair, rapidly moving back and forth. With every one of Natsume's steps, golden draconic aura diffused from beneath her feet. 
The draconic aura beneath her feet stretched into a long tail in midair as Natsume flew over the lush mountains, rushing straight towards the mountaintop. 
Akino was inadvertently fascinated as she stared at Natsume running in midair. 
The Tsuchigumo shook its legs as it looked up, as if to say: "Although you're an enemy, that was beautifully done indeed." Then, it moved its body stiffly and began to pursue. 
Akino came back to her senses. 
Come to think of it, Yamashiro had disappeared at some point. Perhaps he had also gone to the temple. What about Tengu? 
Akino looked here and there. The tengu shikigami was in the same place she had seen it before, standing there with the exact same posture as it watched Akino and the others. 
It seemed that Tengu noticed Akino's gaze. The tengu shikigami nodded lightly, rushing towards Natsume in the direction the Tsuchigumo had left. 
You come too, it was saying. 
"......Yeah." 
Akino nodded deeply and started running at full speed as vigor flowed into her whole body from her rabbit ears to her toes.